Hotel ripoff

[dutchie01]

Hotelprices almost doubled compared to pre Covid, and guess what, theyre all full

[Malc1]

2 minutes ago, dutchie01 said:

Hotelprices almost doubled compared to pre Covid, and guess what, theyre all full

not in the UK for sure  .....  except maybe holiday hot-times and hotspots  .....  or under Govt Housing Contracts maybe 🤔

[Bluemarlin]

2 hours ago, Boomer54 said:

What I like about the singing chef is you just know he likes what he is doing and you can hear that in his voice and see it on your plate so that put's a smile on my face so what's not to like unless you enjoy getting up everyday prepared to be miserable.

Some days I can manage it without any preparation at all 🙂

 

[wharfhouse]

The other issue with hotels is that they change their pricing almost daily with no relationship to how far ahead one books. I stay in a hotel about once a month on business, usually to a pre-agreed schedule and usually use Premier Inn. As such I book up to 12 months in advance (for each month) using a Flex booking (so I can cancel at any time) and then every month check the prices for all my bookings - if they have come down for any month I rebook at the lower price and cancel the old higher price booking. I have been doing this for a few years and using this method generally manage to get a price for a room that is actually quite low. In fact I often get Flex prices lower than a Saver Rate I would have booked. I also do it for any other bookings I need to make  for business or leisure - always book flexible and watch the prices regularly and rebook if it comes down. It's a bit of a pain but that way I avoid paying ridiculous high prices for a room.

[Gary H]

I don't think I've ever paid for parking in any hotel I've stayed at. I know it's a 'thing', but I fortunately the hotels I use have free car parks. One is very limited on parking (and the spaces are ridiculously tight), but it's still free. Ultimately, I prefer parking about a fifteen minute walk away - but even then, that's still free. 

There is one hotel I used to stay at which was taken over about four years ago, which until that point was always free parking. It was also secure with a barrier on entry and a coded one on exit. The company that took it over then decided to put a fee on the parking but there was so much of a stink kicked up about it that it's recently been reverted back to being free. I think what helped that is literally everywhere within reasonable walking distance of there is either double yellow lines or resident permit only, these days.

In terms of hotel room pricing - they've certainly shot up since Covid. I've stayed at the same hotel twice over the course of this year. A gap of about ten months between stays. In that time, the room prices had gone up £20 per night all-round and the restaurant is now only open six days a week, rather than seven. The drinks have notably gone up between visits too. 

Even the likes of Holiday Inns, Premier Inns e.t.c seem to have shot up. I've stayed at four star hotels for the price a number of them are charging now - and not exactly a long time ago either. 

[GMB]

A big turn off is the price of drinks,  one example ( not unusual ) a well known hotel in N Wales, which we thought may be good for an overnighter, was dismissed when we saw the wine list prices.

We actually lived close to the area which makes Picpoul de Pinet - a now fashionable wine from the Med area in S France.

Locally we paid about 7 euros per bottle from the better winemakers. In the Uk it can be found for about £10 in supermarkets up to about £12 for "good domaine wines".

In this hotel in N Wales it is £39 per bottle. Most wines are in the 30 - 50 pound range.   Just not worth it!    Minimum 400% markup. They must think the British are just a load of mugs to be ripped off.

Recently found a pint of local ale in a lakeland hotel £9 per pint! 4 People with healthy appetites can soon run up a ridiculous bill.

The amazing thing a is that there are people actually staying at these hotels. Are they just fools/ well off/ have no appreciation of value/ desperate or what? Or maybe we are just becoming poor pensioners and the inflation is starting to bite.

I, for one, will not pay and I will find far better value by going abroad more often, avoiding UK rip-off hotels. Istanbul, Spain Costas and Cities, Croatia here we come!😼

[wharfhouse]

11 minutes ago, GMB said:

A big turn off is the price of drinks,  one example ( not unusual ) a well known hotel in N Wales, which we thought may be good for an overnighter, was dismissed when we saw the wine list prices.

We actually lived close to the area which makes Picpoul de Pinet - a now fashionable wine from the Med area in S France.

Locally we paid about 7 euros per bottle from the better winemakers. In the Uk it can be found for about £10 in supermarkets up to about £12 for "good domaine wines".

In this hotel in N Wales it is £39 per bottle. Most wines are in the 30 - 50 pound range.   Just not worth it!    Minimum 400% markup. They must think the British are just a load of mugs to be ripped off.

Recently found a pint of local ale in a lakeland hotel £9 per pint! 4 People with healthy appetites can soon run up a ridiculous bill.

The amazing thing a is that there are people actually staying at these hotels. Are they just fools/ well off/ have no appreciation of value/ desperate or what? Or maybe we are just becoming poor pensioners and the inflation is starting to bite.

I, for one, will not pay and I will find far better value by going abroad more often, avoiding UK rip-off hotels. Istanbul, Spain Costas and Cities, Croatia here we come!😼

Totally agree about the price of drinks - if I find they are charging crazy prices i simply won't stay there again!

[GMB]

 

Just checked the price in our ( once local ) supermarket.  The Ormarine Picpoul is a good one  = approx £5.20 per bottle!!!!!

 

Where the heck do they get £39 per bottle from. = Victor Meldrew moment .....!!

[dutchie01]

Thats why they they say in the restaurant business, you loose money on the food and make money on the drinks.

[GMB]

2 hours ago, dutchie01 said:

Thats why they they say in the restaurant business, you loose money on the food and make money on the drinks.

Not long ago doubling up on the wine cost was the norm. It's one thing to make money and profit, but it's another thing to rip people off with profiteering.

I understand the fixed costs in a restaurant, staff, rates etc but I still do not agree that they lose money on the food.

I checked one good Manchester restaurant price who are charging for steaks by the 100gm weight. The average is about £12 per 100 gram. i.e. an indicated £120  per Kilo. The average price even in Waitrose is £35 per Kilo ( Sirloin ). That is still 300% markup.

So what can we do? Typical 4star hotel/ restaurant in Sitges for example £ 88 per night at the moment. Good Rioja Reserva 25 Euros per bottle. Fillet steak 28 Euros . It pays dividends to take the flight and not pay UK Hotel and restaurant prices.  Skyscanner  - from £30 to Barcelona.

Work it out -

Two nights in a posh lakeland hotel with dinner and wine = £750+      - not joking!

Four nights B&B and eating out in Barcelona area (averages )- flights £70, Hotel £300, Good Meals out 70x4 = £280, Other costs £100.  Equals the same or similar costs.

I know which I prefer.

 

BTW Alternatively, some good pubs around here offering very good value for money. 😉

[Malc1]

Several restaurants pubs around my area in Kent now just open at weekend times Fridays too coz the punters aren’t spending and the overheads are quite unsustainable sadly 

Problem getting to Sitges Barcelona whatever for dinner is that crappy journeying to and fro the uk airports and being there 3hrs before the oft delayed flight …….. oh dear, local pub restaurant it is again 

Weatherspoons do a pretty fair offering for the money if you’re “stuck” ! 

Malc 

[Boomer54]

42 minutes ago, GMB said:

Not long ago doubling up on the wine cost was the norm. It's one thing to make money and profit, but it's another thing to rip people off with profiteering.

I understand the fixed costs in a restaurant, staff, rates etc but I still do not agree that they lose money on the food.

I checked one good Manchester restaurant price who are charging for steaks by the 100gm weight. The average is about £12 per 100 gram. i.e. an indicated £120  per Kilo. The average price even in Waitrose is £35 per Kilo ( Sirloin ). That is still 300% markup.

So what can we do? Typical 4star hotel/ restaurant in Sitges for example £ 88 per night at the moment. Good Rioja Reserva 25 Euros per bottle. Fillet steak 28 Euros . It pays dividends to take the flight and not pay UK Hotel and restaurant prices.  Skyscanner  - from £30 to Barcelona.

Work it out -

Two nights in a posh lakeland hotel with dinner and wine = £750+      - not joking!

Four nights B&B and eating out in Barcelona area (averages )- flights £70, Hotel £300, Good Meals out 70x4 = £280, Other costs £100.  Equals the same or similar costs.

I know which I prefer.

 

BTW Alternatively, some good pubs around here offering very good value for money. 😉

My bother was in London to see his son the other week. Met at the local pub after work, but before his son arrived he ordered a 175mls glass of Chardonnay. Came in at a whopping £14.50 which on a bottle basis translates to £58 for a bottle that probably cost them £6 or £7 wholesale. Rip off is an understatement. Insult to injury it was also barely palatable. I told him this is the problem if you will go abroad to places like London what do you expect ?

[Bluemarlin]

Years ago, when I stayed in London hotels a lot, I used to use Lastminute.com. They had something callled secret hotels, where you could book unnamed 5 star hotels in the West End for around £100 a night. With a bit of google searching you could usually figure out what each hotel was from the pictures. Don't know if it's the same now.

It's not everyone's cup of tea, but these days you can get much better value using Airbnb. For the cost of a hotel room you can often get a decent sized apartment, and either eat out at an inexpensive restaurant, or buy your own food and drink. Much better value, especially if more than one person, or a family.

[GMB]

3 hours ago, Malc1 said:

crappy journeying to and from the uk airports

Yes, the last time  we took a flight from Manchester airport ( June 2023 ). I swore that we would never use that horrible place again.

Liverpool and maybe Bradford/Leeds are not quite as awful. But Manchester airport is a bad joke of a place. This now limits our places to go but I am not going anywhere from Manchester airport. Just to give you a taste of the place you are welcomed by big signs saying £100 fine for just stopping near departures arrivals.

To quote a typical trip adviser comment - AVOID at all costs🤬

[GMB]

2 hours ago, Boomer54 said:

Came in at a whopping £14.50 which on a bottle basis translates to £58 for a bottle that probably cost them £6 or £7 wholesale

I think I had a glass of that once. On the label it was described as subtle aromas of cat pee from grapes harvested by hand, from the back end of Wigan market. There was a Harry's challenge that if you down two glasses of it you get a free taxi to A and E Wigan hospital.

[dutchie01]

5 hours ago, GMB said:

So what can we do? Typical 4star hotel/ restaurant in Sitges for example £ 88 per night at the moment. Good Rioja Reserva 25 Euros per bottle. Fillet steak 28 Euros . It pays dividends to take the flight and not pay UK Hotel and restaurant prices.  Skyscanner  - from £30 to Barcelona.

I have been visiting Sitges for the last 25 years on average 5 times a year, was there again last week.  Its where i spend my days. Fully agree with the prices but its not only about the cost of the meat or bottle of wine. How many staff you got in your restaurant? chefs, waiters, cleaners? You have to rent the place. So at what cost? Taxes how much? You will soon find out there is a big difference between Spain and the rest of the world. Comparing is not always easy/honest. Nandos to a Michelin star restaurant. Why are they so expensive?? Its cost. 2 cooks and machines in one place and 250 seats compared to 20 cooks and 30 seats in the other? Which hotel you normally use in Sitges?

[GMB]

2 hours ago, dutchie01 said:

Which hotel you normally use in Sitges?

Only been twice and usually pick one south of the church on the seafront, there are plenty of them, it's a bit quieter, even get free parking sometimes. Everywhere is easily accessible on foot. Can't remember the name of the last hotel. But all around the Costa Brava are good value usually. Lla Franc is a nice place. Off the beaten track. Even Tossa de Mar or Cadaques. Plenty of places to go around. Some of the other places are a bit touristy lacking character and charm- Lloret, Rosis etc. Nice cheap flights to Barcelona then get out by train ASAP.

[Phil xxkr]

19 hours ago, GMB said:

Not long ago doubling up on the wine cost was the norm. It's one thing to make money and profit, but it's another thing to rip people off with profiteering.

I understand the fixed costs in a restaurant, staff, rates etc but I still do not agree that they lose money on the food.

I checked one good Manchester restaurant price who are charging for steaks by the 100gm weight. The average is about £12 per 100 gram. i.e. an indicated £120  per Kilo. The average price even in Waitrose is £35 per Kilo ( Sirloin ). That is still 300% markup.

So what can we do? Typical 4star hotel/ restaurant in Sitges for example £ 88 per night at the moment. Good Rioja Reserva 25 Euros per bottle. Fillet steak 28 Euros . It pays dividends to take the flight and not pay UK Hotel and restaurant prices.  Skyscanner  - from £30 to Barcelona.

Work it out -

Two nights in a posh lakeland hotel with dinner and wine = £750+      - not joking!

Four nights B&B and eating out in Barcelona area (averages )- flights £70, Hotel £300, Good Meals out 70x4 = £280, Other costs £100.  Equals the same or similar costs.

I know which I prefer.

 

BTW Alternatively, some good pubs around here offering very good value for money. 😉

We are I think at a tipping point regarding taxation both direct and indirect. In the press last week - how it cost you £100 less to fly to Slovakia and return with a sleeve of cigarettes than to buy one here - utter madness, not that I smoke. So don't be too hard on people trying to own and run a business, there are huge "compliance" costs that no one gets to see but have to be covered somehow. I always recommend people to start up and grow a business to fully appreciate the saying - it's easier to throw a brick through a window than it is to make one. 🙂

[Boomer54]

39 minutes ago, Phil xxkr said:

We are I think at a tipping point regarding taxation both direct and indirect. In the press last week - how it cost you £100 less to fly to Slovakia and return with a sleeve of cigarettes than to buy one here - utter madness, not that I smoke. So don't be too hard on people trying to own and run a business, there are huge "compliance" costs that no one gets to see but have to be covered somehow. I always recommend people to start up and grow a business to fully appreciate the saying - it's easier to throw a brick through a window than it is to make one. 🙂

On the otherhand it is hugely advantageous from a tax viewpoint to be a business owner rather than a payroll guy so let's not forget with 'great difficulty comes great reward' as Confucious clearly never said, but might have had he been an Accountant.

[Malc1]

1 hour ago, Phil xxkr said:

I always recommend people to start up and grow a business to fully appreciate the saying - it's easier to throw a brick through a window than it is to make one. 🙂

You have to be very very clever and have nerves of steel to be able to create a successful business, at least here in the UK ....  oh, and a good deal of LUCK too very often

I always support Small Businesses where I can ...  I know what the proprietors have been thru' to get where they might be today !

Where you see the FSB sign, shop there 

Malc

[Boomer54]

4 minutes ago, Malc1 said:

You have to be very very clever and have nerves of steel to be able to create a successful business, at least here in the UK ....  oh, and a good deal of LUCK too very often

I always support Small Businesses where I can ...  I know what the proprietors have been thru' to get where they might be today !

Where you see the FSB sign, shop there 

Malc

fsb secret service - Search (bing.com)

Presumably we shouldn't talk about it.

[Malc1]

1 minute ago, Boomer54 said:

fsb secret service - Search (bing.com)

Presumably we shouldn't talk about it.

Oh my  ..  Federation of Small Businesses  ...............  a worthy institution

Malc

[Boomer54]

5 minutes ago, Malc1 said:

Oh my  ..  Federation of Small Businesses  ...............  a worthy institution

Malc

My lips are sealed. No, I mean they are really sealed, god they're quick.

[GMB]

3 hours ago, Phil xxkr said:

I always recommend people to start up and grow a business to fully appreciate the saying - it's easier to throw a brick through a window than it is to make one

Very true. I have been a small business owner and managing and technical director of 3 limited companies, one of which was a wine importer. I fully understand the difficulties running a business and the traps that new owners can fall into.

Rule No 1. The bank is not your friend.

Rule No 2. All the money you think you are making is not all yours.

Rule No whatever - Well that's enough of that. I could go on all day, but I will save you the pain.

It is difficult running a business  (Legally)  in the UK, but if you like pain and suffering then try running one in France!!

[Boomer54]

31 minutes ago, GMB said:

Very true. I have been a small business owner and managing and technical director of 3 limited companies, one of which was a wine importer. I fully understand the difficulties running a business and the traps that new owners can fall into.

Rule No 1. The bank is not your friend.

Rule No 2. All the money you think you are making is not all yours.

Rule No whatever - Well that's enough of that. I could go on all day, but I will save you the pain.

It is difficult running a business  (Legally)  in the UK, but if you like pain and suffering then try running one in France!!

Wine importer, I knew there was something I liked about you. Re France you are absolutely right. They take the gold medal for bureaucracy. Contractors coming with a contract to work there were advised to consider other country options. Believe it or not the UK stacked up pretty well by comparison to many EU countries. Although Italy takes a lot of beating. Taxation used to be considered optional on a 'well if you really want to' basis.